I’ve been in this artistic life, post-educational system, for a little over 12 years now. And no matter how much I’ve hustled or pushed or tried to jump ahead, I always get to my destination at the time (and learning) scale it was always going to take. For some projects, it’s lightning fast – a quick stir fry. Others drag on, like an overloaded casserole slowly coming to temp at 350. And some projects are on crockpot time, where I forget I’m even cooking something but miraculously, 12 hours later, end up with a delicious chili.

After resting and recovering, we adventured. We went to both the Sunday Night Walking Street and the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar, where we sipped fresh passion fruit shakes, ate a bazillion spring rolls + street meats, and watched traditional Lanna dancers. We hiked the Monk's Trail to Wat Pha Lat, a magical Buddhist temple constructed as a meditation and resting point for monks as they climbed to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a temple that sits atop the highest mountain in the region. We had an extreme jungle adventure, piloting bamboo rafts down a river in Mae Wang National Park, seeing elephants, jumping into waterfalls and visiting the Karen Long Neck Village. We took a cooking class, making a five course Thai meal and learning about the local ingredients and cuisine. Simply put, we lived. Fully.